Failed Sudan coup attempt contained

CAIRO - Sudanese authorities have contained a failed coup attempt and the situation has been brought under control, a member of the country's ruling council told Reuters on Tuesday.

Interrogation of suspects involved in the attempted coup on Monday was due to begin and the military would issue a statement shortly, spokesman Mohamed Al Faki Suleiman said. 

Sudan’s state-run television called on the public “to counter" the attempt but did not provide further details.

“All is under control. The revolution is victorious,” Suleiman wrote on Facebook. He also called on the Sudanese to protect the transition.

A military official said an unspecified number of troops from the armored corps were behind the attempt and that they tried to take over several government institutions but were stopped in their tracks.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to brief the media, said many troops, including high-ranking officers, have been arrested. He did not provide further details, saying that a military statement would be released shorty.

Sudan has been on a fragile path to democratic rule since the military’s ouster of the country's longtime autocratic ruler Omar al-Bashir in April 2019, following four months of mass protests.

The country is now ruled by a joint civilian and military government that faces towering economic and security challenges.